Satisfying debut in the Giro for the UAE Team Emirates

The three weeks Grand Tour concluded on Sunday, 29 May with UAE Team Emirates’ Jan Polanc in 11th place in the General Classification.

Commenting on his performance with pride, UAE Team Emirates’ Jan Polanc said: “This is a Giro to remember for me. I thought nothing could be as great as my first stage victory in 2015 but I was wrong! My win on Mount Etna was an unbelievably incredible moment for me. Wearing and retaining the blue jersey for a few stages in a row made me even more determined to do well. My performance improved with every stage and I managed to finish the Giro in the upper part of the overall General Classification, which was very difficult as the competition was fierce. I think in the future I’d like to try and focus my attention on Grand Tours and get into the GC top ten. Placing 11th overall is a really good achievement, seeing as this was my first time battling for a place in the upper part of the GC. Happy cannot begin to describe how I feel!”

UAE Team Emirates was the youngest World Tour team to take part in the Giro with the average age of the squad being 26 with young riders such as Ravasi, Petilli, Conti and Mohoric. UAE Team Emirates’ debut at the 100th Giro had a number of podium positions and memorable finishes which included Ferrari’s podium finish in stage two, Modolo’s top ten in stage three, Conti’s dramatic stage eight, Costa’s three second places and Polanc’s victory on Mount Etna.

Reflecting on the 100th Giro d’Italia, UAE Team Emirates Sports Director Marco Marzano said: “One victory and four second places – an impressive performance from our young riders and the team’s constant presence in the most important breakaways is the team’s 100th Giro d’Italia in a nutshell. We are quite satisfied with the results overall. We set out with a few goals at the beginning of the race and I feel that some of those have been met. This was UAE Team Emirates’ debut at the Giro and we tried to honour the commitment to do well for the whole nation and our sponsors.”

UAE Team Emirates will race at the Hammer Series from Friday, 2 June, the Critérium du Dauphiné on Sunday, 4 June and the Tour de Suisse on Saturday, 10 June: meanwhile, enjoy the best images gallery from UAE Team Emirates at the Giro (photo Bettini).